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Week VIII Roundup: UWS Midwest

FLINT, MI – Both Genesee FC and the Fort Wayne Gryphons came into this contest looking for their first victories of the 2018 season and with the two sides combining to score just eight goals in 15 previous matches, something had to give. But the goals did flow in this contest and Genesee came out with a thorough 5-2 victory. It was a big day for Genesee midfielder Ashlyn Skidmore as she netted a pair of goals with an assist and got the scoring started in the 18th minute, finishing off Ellie Christon’s service. Fort Wayne responded back just four minutes later by way of Alanna Richmond’s first goal of the season. Rachel Raisins restored order for Genesee with a 35th minute strike but again, the Gryphons didn’t go away as they got an equalizer just five minutes later from Alex Koontz. It looked like the first half would end tied at two but right on the stroke of halftime, Christon re-secured Genesee’s one-goal lead with a well hit strike. The hosts wouldn’t look back from there as right before the hour mark, substitute Whitney Fleming finished off a well-worked team goal. Skidmore would wrap up the scoring with a quarter hour to play with a long distance strike, completing her five-point effort. The result was the start that Genesee was looking for in their double-match weekend as it gave them a little confidence heading into their season finale at Lansing.

EAST LANSING, MI – It was a battle of the top of the table on a hot night in East Lansing as after drawing 2-2 back in Week I, Lansing United hosted Grand Rapids FC Women with a chance to give themselves a little cushion heading into their regular season finale on Sunday. After a couple of early chances for the hosts, Lansing finally got in front in the 12th minute when Anna Stinson delivered a beautiful cross from the right flank right towards an unmarked Riko Sagara, whose towering header from the penalty spot beat GRFC goalkeeper Maia Perez. However, that lead for Lansing was short lived as three minutes later, Grand Rapids scored the equalizing goal as former Grand Valley State University All-American Marti Corby cut in from outside the area and her right-footed effort rippled the back of the net. The 1-1 score held through halftime but five minutes into the second half, Lansing thought they scored a second goal as off Sagara’s deep driven corner, Mary Carlson thought that her header that rocketed down off the crossbar bounced over the line but the referees deemed that the ball stayed out before a brave Perez was able to smother the rebound in traffic. Lansing would get their chance in the 65th minute as Alexis Mitchell generated her team a penalty kick after a handball was called in the box. Mitchell then finished the job as she calmly slotted the ball home, picking up her fourth goal of the season. That was the difference on the night as Lansing United took all three points and put themselves in great position to earn the number one seed for the Conference tournament.

BRIGHTON, MI – With Grand Rapids FC Women falling to Lansing United on Friday evening, it was an opportunity for Detroit Sun FC to pass the defending UWS Champions in the Midwest Conference standings. Meanwhile a win for Michigan would all but secure their spot in the Conference Tournament and the hosts got off to the flying start that they needed as Jennifer Borawski scored her fifth goal of the season in the eighth minute, giving her side a 1-0 lead. Madison Hughes doubled Michigan’s lead in the 66th minute and it looked like time was running out for the Sun in their hopes of securing a potential two-seed in the tournament. But then the switch turned on for last year’s UWS National Semifinalist as Anastasia Savich trimmed the deficit to 2-1 with an 83rd minute goal. And in the 88th minute, UWS Week VII Offensive Player of the Week Rachel DeLuca latched onto Dani Evans’ service and netted the equalizer. The teams ended up splitting the points at full-time and while the result didn’t help either team move up the standings, clawing their way back from a two-goal deficit against a good side like Michigan gives them real belief that they can go and potentially lift the Midwest Conference Tournament title.

GRANDVILLE, MI – After falling to Lansing United on Friday night, Grand Rapids FC Women wanted to put that performance behind them and come out firing against their next opponent. That opponent was a very overwhelmed Indy Premier SC team, that was operating short staffed and could not contain Grand Rapids for the 90 minutes as the defending UWS Champions defeated Indy 14-0. GRFC got off to a fast start with five goals scored in the first 20 minutes and never looked back from there on a hot and humid night. Jodian Morris netted a hat trick on the night and Cindy Lay picked up a first half brace as well to lead Grand Rapids, along with getting goals from eight other players. The win also confirmed that Grand Rapids clinched their ticket back to the Midwest Conference Tournament and would finish no lower than second place in the regular season standings.

EAST LANSING, MI – Expansion teams don’t always need a growing year or two to figure things out in order to have future success. Lansing United proved that they wanted to contend for a championship from day one and took their first step on Sunday afternoon as they clinched the Midwest Conference regular season title with a 4-1 victory over Genesee FC. Grand Valley State University forward Corey Sawall joined the club midseason and hadn’t experienced too many opportunities to contribute in games. That changed on Sunday afternoon as she netted a pair of goals inside of 20 minutes to pace her team on the afternoon. The first goal came in the 8th minute off of a corner kick and the second came off of Riko Sagara’s blocked effort. Lansing extended their lead to 3-0 in the 48th minute as Brittany Tanner rounded Genesee’s goalkeeper Annabelle Hegeman and tucked home her second goal of the year. Genesee pulled a goal back in the 83rd minute as Ellie Christon buried a penalty kick but two minutes later, Lansing restored their three-goal lead as substitute Lexi Pelafas netted her fifth goal of the campaign, finishing off Dani Stephan’s free kick delivery. The victory secured not only the conference regular season title but the opportunity to host the Midwest Conference Tournament in two weeks time, which will certainly be a big advantage for Jason Crist’s team as they went 4-0-1 in playing at Archer Stadium.

BRIGHTON, MI – An unfortunate situation occurred in the weekend’s final match in the Midwest Division as the Michigan Legends were scheduled to take on Indy Premier SC on Sunday at the Legacy Center Fieldhouse. The Legends were notified before the contest that Indy Premier would be forfeiting the match due to their inability to field a team. Under league rules, the league office awarded the home team (the Legends) a 3-0 victory. The league is currently reviewing the matter and will be informing Indy Premier SC of any additional penalties in the near future due to forfeiting a league match.

About United Women's Soccer:

UWS is a national women’s soccer league sanctioned by U.S. Soccer. UWS is a professionally operated league created for teams that meet high minimum standards. The season runs from May until the end of July, culminating in a National Championship match. The UWS player pool is comprised of college players, aspiring & former professionals and international stars. You can follow UWS on social media on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Media can contact the UWS Communications office by e-mail at UWSPress@gmail.com. You can visit the league’s official website at UWSSoccer.com. Interested team applicants can contact League Commissioner Joe Ferrara, Jr. by e-mail at Joe@UWSSoccer.com.